NTPC snaps power to BSES discoms
Aravali Power Company (APCPL) on Sunday night stopped the supply of 445MW power to BSES discoms Rajdhani and Yamuna over non-payment of dues of Rs 961.58 crore. The NTPC-run generation company had sent a notice to the distribution company last week, but BSES failed to make any payments by the stipulated time. APCPL in Jhajjar has been supplying power to the discoms since March 5, 2011. While BSES Rajdhani gets 372MW, Yamuna gets 73MW. BSES Rajdhani owes APCPL Rs 695.25 crore and Yamuna Rs 266.33 crore. The power supplier said that payments by the discoms had become irregular. “The matter was brought before the Supreme Court, which in its judgment dated March 26, 2014 directed the discoms to ensure payments of all energy bills from January 1, 2014. However, the dues have continued to accumulate,” NTPC said. tnn NTPC said that APCPL has to pay in advance to its fuel suppliers, which constitutes about 70-80% of its monthly energy bills. “Aravali power cannot meet its commitments, including payment to fuel suppliers, debt servicing requirements and salaries to its employees, if BSES doesn’t pay the dues. APCPL had no other option but to regulate power to the discoms,” it added. Meanwhile, BSES has assured that there would be no power cuts in their areas despite the regulation. “The power demand between September and March in BSES areas ranges from 2,600-3,000MW. We have a long term power arrangement of around 3800MW for this period, apart from power banking with other states. In case of unforeseen circumstances, we will buy power from the exchange at economical rates,” said a BSES official. Nathan Beaulieu Womens Jersey
Unit 2 of Kudankulam to start commercial operation from Dec
The second unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, which was connected to the southern grid last week, is scheduled to begin commercial operation in December this year. The unit with the Russian-designed VVER-1000 reactor was synchronised with the southern grid on August 29 and has been generating about 245 MWe. The connection of the second unit brings India’s installed nuclear generating capacity to 6,780 MWe. Excavation for Kudankulam units 3 and 4 is in progress and first concrete for the new units will be poured in March next year, Rosatom, the Russian counterpart of India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) said. The units 3 and 4 will begin power production by 2022-2023. Construction of the unit 2 was completed in July, 2015 and was loaded with fuel in May, 2016. Following safety tests, it attained criticality on 10 July. The Kudankulam first unit achieved first criticality in mid-2013, was connected to the grid in October, 2013 and began commercial operation in December, 2014. Kudankulam units 1 and 2 have been built by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL). These are operated by NPCIL under IAEA safeguards, with supervision from Russian specialists. Enriched uranium fuel for the entire life of the plant is to be supplied by Russia. Kenneth Faried Jersey
NTPC, IIT-M sign agreement for R&D
Power generator NTPC Ltd and IIT Madras have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for research and development in areas such as bulk ash utilisation, carbon capture, waste to energy, gypsum building and grid stability. As per the MoU, joint research projects will be taken up by both the organisations for development of new technologies, process and product for optimisation and efficiency improvements. NTPC is India’s largest generator of power with an installed generation capacity of 47,000 Megawatt including 6,900 Mw contributed by its Joint Ventures and subsidiaries. Todd Bertuzzi Jersey
Agra tops country in power theft; line losses at 30%
The city of Taj Mahal has earned the dubious distinction of leading urban centres across the country in the number of power thefts recorded in the past year. A total of 2,182 FIRs were registered here against power pilferers, followed by Kanpur with 1,409 and Ghaziabad with 1,308 cases. All three urban centres came above Delhi, where 1,121 power theft cases were filed, according to the national crime records bureau (NCRB). The line loss in the city due to such thefts is a massive 29.6%, the report added. Among states, Uttar Pradesh leads in the country with a staggering 57,193 cases, which is 58% of all 97,591 power theft cases reported in the country. It is followed by Haryana (18,598) and West Bengal (8,998). Other four Uttar Pradesh cities which find mention in the NCRB report are Varanasi (471), Meerut (418), Allahabad (394) and the state capital Lucknow (204). SC Bharti, director (technical), Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd (DVVNL), said, “The problem of power theft is quite rampant in the whole of UP, but our endeavour is to minimize the losses. Besides conducting raids, we also hold camps to provide power connections to people. The trend of power theft in Agra has gone down over the years.” DVVNL is responsible for power distribution in 21 districts of Uttar Pradesh, including Agra, Mathura, Mainpuri, Aligarh, Firozabad and Kanpur among others. According to Torrent Power, the private electricity distribution company which has been working in Agra for the past six years, they have brought down the number of theft cases and line loss considerably ever since they took over. “In 2010, when we took over the power distribution, the line loss was 58% (67% unofficially). It has been brought down to 29.6% and our target is to reach 26% by the end of this year,” a spokesperson of Torrent told TOI. During an anti-theft drive last year, DVVNL lodged over 7,200 FIRs and collected Rs 75 crore in arrears in just 25 days. As part of the distribution body’s “one-time settlement scheme”, which aimed at regularising illegal connections, Agra division had stood first in generating the maximum revenue of Rs 120 crore from rural areas and Rs 50 crore from urban areas. Rod Langway Womens Jersey
Loans for power projects? Banks tight-fisted
Banking consortia are delaying lending decisions for stranded power projects that are close to completion, pushing investment of nearly `2 lakh crore towards becoming non-performing assets (NPAs), industry executives say. At stake are plants with total capacity of 25,000 MW, with nearly complete coal-based projects being the most vulnerable.Gas-fired plants stranded by fuel scarcity have gained from government’s auction of imported gas, the latest beneficiaries being nine fir ms including Ratnagiri, GVK Power and Lanco Infratech, which emerged winners in the fourth phase of auction on Saturday . Bankers say normal lending cannot resume unless various issues are resolved in the sector, which first saw a rush of investment, but was hit by fuel scarcity, policy drift in the previous regime, absence of power purchase pacts and cancellation of coal mines by the Supreme Court. Banks are reluctant to fund infrastructure, particularly the heavily-indebted power sector, as bad loans have eaten into their profits. Power companies complain that many projects that can become profitable are suffering because banks are ambivalent in their response, causing costly delays. “They neither say `yes’ nor `no’. They merely delay,” said an industry insider. He said that at times individual banks block decisions are taken by majority lenders in a consortium. Power producers have taken up the matter with RBI. “It is observed that in many cases, certain banksdo not implement decisions taken by majority of the lenders in the consortium and put additional conditions. This often leads to long delays, which impacts the infrastructure project … Once a decision has been taken in JLFconsortium meeting, all lenders and other nonbank institutions should be made to comply with majority decision,” power producers said in a letter to the RBI. Association of Power Producers, which recently took up the matter, has sought the intervention of RBI in improving the financial condition of stressed power sector projects. “These issues are beyond the control of the developer and are driving the affected projects towards being classified as NPAs. With support from RBI, these can be turned around into profitable assets,” the industry body told RBI. Bankers say they have many concerns. “The power sector has faced peculiar issues with regards to purchase agreements, coal linkages and environmental clearances.Lending to this sector or projects in the sector cannot be resumed unless these issues are resolved,” said KVS Manian, head-corporate, investment banking at Kotak Mahindra Bank. “If developers can resolve these issues then banks will be more than happy to lend more money to these projects,” he said. Industry executives say that on paper, mechanisms for debt restructuring via consortium lending exist, but there are fatal delays inherent in the process. “The message from the government to banks is that you cannot unduly delay these things. If it is not timely, it doesn’t matter if they sanction it or not. They do it after 6-8 months by that time the damage is already done,” a power sector executive said. “Once the lead lender has taken a decision and the Joint Lenders’ Forum has agreed and the lead lender has given his sanction, the rest of the banks have to be time bound,” he said.”There are projects which might need about one and a half years to complete but due to these delays, for six months you are sitting and doing nothing.” Sushil Maroo, executive vice-chairman of Essar Power, spoke of regulatory and policy deficiencies. “Banks and FIs are reluctant to finance power projects, which have been affected by coal block de-allocations and delay in statutory approvals.” Star Lotulelei Authentic Jersey
‘India likely to add 4.8 GW solar power capacity this year’
Solar power generation capacity of 4.8 GW is likely to be added this year in the country as installations are picking up, says a report. The report by Mercom Capital Group also said that power distribution companies continue to be a “drag” since they are showing reluctance to buy solar energy amid low electricity prices. “India has reached 2.8 GW in solar installations year-to-date and cumulative installations have reached 8.1 GW as of August 2016,” it said in a release. As per its forecast, about 4.8 GW of solar energy capacity is expected to be installed in 2016. According to the global clean energy communications and research firm, the solar project pipeline in India is now approximately 21 GW, with 14 GW under development and 7 GW scheduled to be auctioned. One GW (Giga Watt) is equal to 1,000 MW (Mega Watt). “Solar installations and its share of energy generation has picked up speed but distribution companies continue to be a drag on the sector and are showing reluctance to purchase solar in light of low power demand and cheap power availability on the exchanges,” Mercom Capital Group CEO and Co-Founder Raj Prabhu said. This is an alarming development that the central government should address immediately to restore confidence among developers and investors, he added. Terrance Williams Womens Jersey
No power cuts even if NTPC cuts supply over dues: BSES
As the state-run NTPC Ltd plans to cut supply to BSES discoms in eastern and central Delhi from Sunday midnight over non-payment of Rs 961.58 crore dues, power companies today said the move will not impact supply quantity as they have enough electricity at their disposal. “The discoms have power storing arrangements. They will also purchase short-term power in case there emerges unforeseen situation at economical rates. Residents need not face power cuts. Meanwhile, we are making all the efforts to see the dues are cleared,” a BSES official said. The official further stated the power company is under “financial strain” due to non-liquidation of regulatory assets estimated to be over Rs 16,000 crore as on March 31. On the other hand, he said, the dues to be paid to the NTPC’s Aravali Power Company Private Limited (APCL), which supplies the power to the discoms, are to the tune of Rs 961.58 crore. “A matter to this regard is pending before Supreme Court and we are awaiting its judgment. The judgment shall pave the way for liquidation of the assets and thereby, clear the dues,” he added. The NTPC Ltd had yesterday said a notice for regulation of power supply was served on Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group’s BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd (BRPL) and BSES Yamuna Power Ltd (BYPL), which will deprive Delhi of 445 MW of power with effect from 00:00 hrs of September 5. “Despite clear directions of the Supreme Court, the dues continued to accumulate. Today, the outstanding amounts are Rs 961.58 crore (Rs.695.25 crore of BRPL & Rs.266.33 crore of (BYPL),” it had said. APCPL, Jhajjar has been supplying power to BRPL and BYPL since March 5, 2011. It has allocated 445 MW power to the discoms, 372 MW to BRPL and 73 MW to BYPL and average monthly energy bill is about Rs 87 crore (Rs 73 crore to BRPL and Rs 14 crore to BYPL) for the current financial year. The company had said the payments by the BSES discoms (power distribution companies) had become irregular for quite sometime. The matter was brought before the apex court, which in its judgement dated March 26, 2014 directed the BSES discoms to ensure payments of all current energy bills from January 1, 2014. However, the company said that despite clear directions of the Court, the dues continued to accumulate. MORE SBR ENM dues continued to accumulate. Brandon Marshall Womens Jersey
Looking to bring down cost of borrowings: PFS
PTC India Financial Services Ltd (PFS) is looking to bring down its cost of borrowings and is in discussions with various entities for competitive costs, the company said in its annual report. “PFS is working towards lowering its cost of borrowings and is in discussions with various multi-lateral/bilateral financing institutions for arranging funds at competitive costs/terms,” the company said in its annual report 2015-16. The company said it wishes to explore opportunities across the infrastructure sector. In 2015-16, the company’s total sanctioned debt assistance crossed Rs 15,000 crore mark. “The disbursements have been robust during FY16. PFS continues to focus its energies on lending outside coal-based power projects for infrastructure facilities such as power transmission, coal mining, private railway sidings and will continue to evaluate niche opportunities across energy value chain,” it said. Government is committed to provide everyone with access to electricity and has identified power sector as a key sector to focus on so as to promote sustained industrial growth, it added. “The development activities and the interest in the renewable area offers good potential to PFS. PFS continues to evaluate business proposals for these projects in line with the developments taking place in the sector and the initiatives undertaken at the governmental level,” says the report. This apart, PFS’ board has also recommended dividend of 12 per cent or Rs 1.2 per equity share of Rs 10 each for 2015-16. A subsidiary of PTC India, PFS is a registered NBFC with the Reserve Bank. The company provides financing solutions to the energy value chain which includes investing in equity or extending debt to power projects in generation, transmission, distribution, fuel resources and fuel-related infrastructure. Kevin Zeitler Authentic Jersey
Power tariff in Haryana cut 37 paise per unit
Two days after having decided to slash power rates in Haryana, distribution companies Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam on Sunday announced to pass on the benefits from this billing cycle. Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) on Friday notified to bring down electricity rates by 37 paisa per unit. This decision will benefit 55 lakh electricity consumers in all categories across the state. Additional chief secretary, Rajan Gupta said the companies were working towards implementing the HERC decision from this billing cycle. “This is for the first time in two decades when the state government had strongly pleaded to bring down tariff . This will bring major relief to consumers,” Haryana’s public relation minister, Kavita Jain said. Dennis Seidenberg Jersey
CESC begins power distribution in Rajasthan at Kota
The Rs. 17,000 crore RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, on Thursday said, it has begun its electricity distribution operation at Kota in Rajasthan. Aniruddha Basu, managing director at The Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation (CESC) said in Kota, two wholly-owned subsidiaries of CESC Rajasthan Limited have been formed for electricity distribution in Kota and Bharatpur for a period of 20 years. According to A.N. Singh, CEO of CESC Rajasthan, the Kota distribution franchise is spread over 150 square kilometres and has 1.76 lakh registered consumers which grew seven per cent during 2014-15 as compared to the previous fiscal year. “At Kota we will follow CESC’s customer-centric initiatives to provide best-in-class services to power consumers by developing and modernising the city’s distribution systems”, Basu said in a statement. He said that citizens of Kota will be provided with immediate new connections and they will benefit from the proactive complaint management from CESC which currently has more than 3 million consumers in its licensed area in Kolkata and adjacent area. Shaun Livingston Jersey